Blood Politics (Blood Destiny 4)

by Harper, Helen

  A slow smile spread across Atlanteia’s face. “We won’t forget this, Mackenzie.”

  “It’s Mack,” I repeated. Before the words had left my mouth however, the dryad had melted away back into the safety of whichever nearby tree she had sprung from. Alrighty then.

  “See you,” I called out softly, and rather pointedly.

  Nothing answered back other than the quiet rustle of leaves as a light breeze ran through them. I shrugged to myself and turned away, heading back towards the village. I wasn’t quite sure what I’d been expecting of her, but it certainly hadn’t been a plea for help. I had to admit rather selfishly that it felt good to be needed. The trees were casting elongated shadows across the path, making me wonder exactly how many dryads there were inhabiting this park and whether Atlanteia was their de facto leader. The politics of tree nymphs were not something I’d ever previously considered. Or indeed the politics of trees either. I chewed my bottom lip and cast a wary eye up at the branches overhead.

  “So,” I said aloud, my voice sounding strange in the relative silence of my surroundings, “if you lot gossip so much and see so much, do you know who really killed JFK?”

  The trees didn’t answer. Maybe they couldn’t communicate across continents and didn’t know.

  “Is Lord Lucan still alive?”

  There was an unremarkable lack of response. My head was starting to feel woozy again so I looked back down to the path, trying to make sure that I didn’t trip on any low lying plants or roots as I walked.

  “First sign of madness, Mack,” I told myself. Although that probably wasn’t accurate. The first sign of madness was no doubt overdosing on a fucking herbal remedy.

  I was still musing over my innate stupidity when, without warning, an arm grabbed me from behind, latching itself around my neck. Instant heat sparked up within the pit of my intestines and I kicked out backwards with as much force as I could muster. My reactions must have been dulled, however, and my movements slow, as my attacker easily dodged it, and began to squeeze harder until I was fighting for breath. Fuck. I forced myself to stay calm and not panic.

  Whoever was behind me was tight up against my back, making it difficult to effectively manoeuvre. Thinking quickly, I used my left hand to clutch at the suffocating hold around my neck, then lashed out with my right to where I assumed my attacker’s head was, slamming my palm upwards in a bid to connect with their nose. As expected, my hand was blocked with ease, but as soon as I felt the answering smack, I wrenched my left hand upwards and behind, getting purchase on the hilt of one of Balud’s daggers that was strapped back to my back and managing to slide it out, twisting the blade as I did so in order to slash whoever was brave enough to think they could take me on. There was a hiss of pain as my plan worked, and the chokehold loosened, allowing me to pull myself quickly out from under it and spin to meet them head on.

  My eyes narrowed when I realised who I was facing. I probably should have found the time to at least flick through one of those vampire books.

  “What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Aubrey?”

  His blood red eyes stared at me, unblinkingly, and he laughed without humour. “I’m looking for a pet. I thought maybe a hamster would do.”

  I tightened my grip on the dagger, judging where it would be best to throw it. As a vampire I knew I would find it nigh on impossible to kill the prick, short of staking him or ripping his head off, but I was confident I’d be able to do him some damage at the very least. Sure, I’d ripped off Tryyl’s head when I’d been in dragon form, but that was a route I wasn’t prepared to go down unless I really had to. Not that I was even convinced that I’d be able to shift at will; I hadn’t ever tried. Still, without looking, I was happily aware that my familiar green fire had already sparked up at my fingertips. Maybe I could barbecue the bastard.

  I kept talking, trying to distract him. “You know I’m not actually a werehamster, right?”

  “No shit,” Aubrey drawled, without a trace of tension in his voice. “Even if I hadn’t already whetted my lips on a drop of your blood, the fact that you’ve had the beasts, the wizards and the faeries watching you would suggest that there’s more to you than meets the eye.” He bared his teeth. “I knew if I was patient enough they’d eventually disappear though.’

  I decided that I could probably aim the dagger straight at his jugular. That would incapacitate him long enough for me to then light him up with fire.

  “So that’s what this is about? You want a drink?”

  He ran his tongue around the edge of his very sharp and very white teeth. “I’ve been able to think of little else since that morsel I had of you back in February. Now I’m going to have a lot more.”

  The obvious hunger in his low voice sent a shiver down my spine. I’d have to kill him now. What a shame.

  I opened my mouth as if to retort further, then let the dagger fly, too quickly for him to react. Unfortunately, with my senses dulled as they were by the overdose of TemperSoothe, my aim was off by just a fraction. It was enough though to miss his throat entirely. I flicked my wrist instead, in order to send out a stream of lethal flame towards him, and then watched, my stomach dropping, as the fire fizzled out in a cloud of smoke. Oh shit. A wave of lightheadedness spun through me and, for one single heartbeat, I stared at Aubrey while he stared at me. Then I spun round and ran.

  When I wanted to, I could sprint as fast as any human. I knew that the bloodsucker would be faster than me eventually though, so I’d just have to reach the safety of the village before he caught up. My heart was pounding in my mouth and adrenaline was burning through my system. I’d just have to hope that it burnt through the lingering traces of the skullcap pretty fucking quickly too. There were few trees around now – not that either they or the dryads would be much use against the might of Aubrey. I was on my own. Long grass whipped against my calves as I forced myself to go full pelt. The lights of the Vale of Heath flickered into view and I put my head down and gave it everything I had, faint relief sinking through me at the impending safety that the potential human witnesses could offer. It might be the dead of night but it was just possible that someone was awake. Even Aubrey in his current mode of absolute predator wouldn’t risk being seen by someone.

  The letters on the sign proclaiming the village entrance became visible just as I heard a whooshing sound right behind me and Aubrey careened into my back, knocking me painfully to the ground. The breath was slammed out of my lungs and, just when I was about to twist and find some way to defend myself properly, sharp pain lanced through my neck as he sank his teeth in. I struggled against him, but it was all in vain as the dizziness in my head increased and nausea rose up in my stomach. I kicked out and tried to yell, but it was too late and my cry was swallowed up. With nothing else left to try, I opened up the Voice connection in my head, managing to force out Corrigan’s name. My vision, however, was already dimming around the edges, and I faded away into an ever spiralling darkness.

  Chapter Seven

  When I woke up, I knew without opening my eyes that I was where I shouldn’t be. There was a lingering smell of familiar spicy citrus in the air, not strong enough that its owner was present, but enough of it to suggest that he’d definitely been in the vicinity. My neck, at the spot where Aubrey’s teeth had latched on, throbbed dully. It was a good sign; it meant I was still alive. Oddly, I felt more embarrassed than annoyed that I’d allowed the red-eyed wanker to get the better of me. Still, it just added one more tally to the list of my grievances against the bloodsuckers. I’d make sure that eventually Aubrey in particular paid back tenfold what he’d dolled out. Right now, however, I had other priorities.

  I slowly lifted up one eyelid and took a peek, just to be sure. I was in a huge bed, smothered by a soft duvet, and in the centre of a large mahogany panelled room. I’d been here before. I pushed myself up onto my elbows to get a better look and confirm my suspicions. Fuck it. I was in Corrigan’s own bedroom. No doubt he’d be off gloating some
where at the fact that he’d had to come galloping in and rescue me from the clutches of the evil vampire. I’d never live it down. Scowling, I sat up properly, then looked down at myself. Bloody hell. I was wearing some kind of frothy pink lace concoction that was as far removed from the muted plain t-shirt I’d had on when I’d originally left home as it was possible to get. My eyes narrowed. Had he undressed me?

  I heard the muffled sound of voices from the other side of the door, and the clink of some china. Standing up quickly, and wrapping myself in the duvet like a giant marshmallow, I prepared to tell him exactly what I thought of him. Saving my sorry skin did not give him carte blanche to take off my fucking clothes.

  I opened my mouth to tell him in no uncertain terms exactly what I thought, then snapped it shut again when I realised who it actually was bustling into the room.

  “Hey, Mack.”

  I beamed at Betsy, letting the duvet drop, and rushed over for a hug, mindful of the tray she was carrying.

  “I’m so happy to see you, Bets,” I exclaimed. “I can’t believe you and Tom have finally gotten around to setting a date.”

  She blushed slightly and grinned at me. “I know! Can you believe it? I told him that having the ceremony in Cornwall would be a bad idea but he insisted. He wants Julia to be able to be there without being made to travel. And it’ll be lovely to be back at the old place again.” She grimaced for a moment. “I just wish it meant that we didn’t have to invite Anton too.”

  I dismissed that and smiled at her. For a moment we both stood there like idiots, grinning at each other with the unspoken memories of times gone by. Although I’d always been closer to Tom, Betsy and I had been friends for a long time. In fact, she’d been the first person who I’d ever told about my bloodfire. The best friends are the ones who you can be away from for months or even years, but then when you meet up again it’s like you just saw them that morning.

  She nodded towards my neck. “What the hell happened anyway? Lord Corrigan had the whole keep up at three o’clock in the morning out hunting for you. It wasn’t until the mages got some kind of tracking spell out that we found you.” She frowned at me. “How many of the bloodsuckers were there?”

  I coughed. It wouldn’t do my badass reputation much good if I told her there had just been one. “Er, forget about that and tell me how the fuck I ended up wearing this thing?”

  Betsy glanced down at my frilly night dress and giggled. “Suits you. Pink is really your colour.”

  “Fuck off.”

  She laughed again, and put down the tray on the edge of the bed. “It belongs to one of the shifters who’s here from time to time.”

  Would that be a dark-haired shifter who enjoyed the company of Corrigan from time to time too? I thought about asking Betsy but, given her proclivity for gossip, decided it might not be such a good idea if I wanted to keep my pointless jealousy to myself.

  Fortunately she didn’t seem to notice my inner turmoil and gestured down at the food instead. “Here, you should eat something. I got you some good coffee too.”

  My stomach growled, and I grabbed a roll and started nibbling away at the edges. “It’s great to see you, Betsy, it really is, but I need to get my clothes and get out of here. I’ve got a hundred and one things to do.”

  Betsy stared at me. “You can’t go.”

  I stopped chewing. “Oh yes I can.”

  “Mack, Lord Corrigan gave strict instructions that you were to be kept under guard at all times. He was all for storming straight round to the vamps in fact, but this old wizard guy convinced him that it would be better to wait till you came round to find out what actually happened and who it was.”

  I figured that the ‘old wizard guy’ was the Arch-mage. Brilliant. As if I wasn’t being pestered enough by the lot of them already.

  “So where is his Lord Furriness now then?”

  “He stayed with you until it was clear that you were going to be alright then he left to go up north.” She wrinkled her nose. “There’s been a lot of bother with a group of rogues recently. He’s gone to try and sort it out.”

  Score one to me. It would be a hell of a lot easier to get out of here if Corrigan wasn’t hanging around.

  “And the Arch-mage?”

  Betsy looked confused.

  “The old wizard guy?”

  Her expression cleared. “Oh, him. I think he’s downstairs talking to Staines.”

  I chewed my tongue and thought for a minute, then looked over at my old friend. I hated to do this, but I didn’t have much choice. I really did have things to do. “You know, Betsy, you’re right. I should stay. In fact, I’m actually starting to feel a bit ill again. Maybe I should lie down for a few more hours.”

  She looked worried, which made me hate myself. “Are you okay? Should I go and get someone to have a look at you?”

  “No, no, honestly, I’m alright. I think I just need to rest.”

  “Mack, are you sure?”

  I nodded firmly. “Thanks for the food and the coffee though.”

  The concern didn’t leave her eyes, but she patted me on my shoulder. “I’ll come back in an hour and check on you.”

  I sat down on the edge of Corrigan’s massive bed and watched her go. As soon as she had closed the door behind her, I reached over and gulped down a mouthful of some hot coffee, then rushed over to the window and yanked open the heavy brocade curtains. She’d no doubt tell Corrigan if he inquired that I wasn’t feeling well, so he’d hopefully lay off contacting me through his Voice to give me enough time to make my escape. Judging by the bright light outside it was already afternoon, and I had places to be. I knew from my previous unwilling visit here that this room was high up and that there wasn’t a fire escape. That didn’t mean that I was trapped, however. My head was clear, proving that the effects of the TemperSoothe had gone from my system, and that I’d not lost so much blood that I was in any danger. Adrenalised bloodfire flared up in my belly and ran through my veins until I could feel my fingertips tingling with the heat of it. It would keep me sharp enough.

  “Focus the fire,” I whispered to myself, and undid the latch on the window, and leaned out.

  I was a long way up. Months ago, when Solus had blithely transported me here for kicks, Corrigan had said that he was on the fifteenth floor. Looking out, that appeared to be about right. It was okay though, heights didn’t really bother me. I glanced around the window, realising that I was fortunate that the Brethren’s keep was an old building with plenty of ornate stone carvings built in, then swung out. My bare toes found purchase in a smooth weather-beaten groove, and my fingers pinched painfully onto the edge of the window frame. I felt vulnerable in the stupid pink nightie, and the vaguely intelligent part of me recognised that this was potentially a very stupid thing to be doing. After all, just scant hours previously I’d been full of bravado that I could kick Aubrey’s arse, and look where that had gotten me. One slip and Mackenzie Smith, the fearful and terrifying Draco Wyr, would be a smear of strawberry jam on the pavement.

  But I was also strong. I had no more freaking herbal shit swimming around inside of me. And if I could just reach out and grab the drain pipe that was affixed to the side of the fort then I could simply shimmy all the way down to the ground. It was clearly an old design and I knew that it would be made of stern stuff. Certainly stern enough to carry my weight anyway. I held my breath and let go with one hand then stretched over. My fingertips just scraped it. There was nothing for it but to jump. I closed my eyes and leapt, my hands fixing around its cool metal curves just in time. I exhaled and then began to inch my way down.

  It was painful, and a couple of times I had to carefully release one hand and grip on tightly with the other so I could stretch out my fingers to rid myself of cramp, but I made good progress and after less than ten minutes I was already halfway down. At one point I passed by a genuine stone gargoyle that looked so remarkably like Slim that a loud guffaw escaped me. It had heavy eyebrows, and pointed ears placed
on either side of its prominently chubby cheekbones. I gave the statue a quick smile, then a slight breeze picked up and the pink monstrosity began to whip around my thighs. At least I was still wearing underwear.

  I continued my descent, easing myself down the drainpipe bit by bit. I wondered how difficult it would be climb up it and storm the Brethren’s defences. Not that I’d want to, of course, but you’d think that it would be something that the shifters would have considered. Next time I spoke to Corrigan, if he wasn’t too pissed off with me to listen, I’d point out the weakness to him. That would be fun.

  I was starting to shiver by the time I finally made it to the bottom and planted my feet firmly back onto the ground with a sigh of relief. Now all I had to do was see if I could get a taxi to take me home. I had some money stuffed into a drawer back in my flat that would cover the fare. It was regrettable that I had to leave behind my backpack – and my one remaining dagger from Balud that I had yet to even bloody pay for. Having to spend hours arguing my way out of the keep had just seemed too tiresome though. I could retrieve my things later. I turned round to face the road.

  “Spiderman would be proud,” drawled Solus. “I’m not sure your costume matches up to his, however.” He was standing on the edge of the pavement, eyeing me curiously.

  A flicker of irritated bloodfire rose deep within my veins. “Have you just stood there and watched me spend twenty minutes clambering down?”

  “I wasn’t just standing.” He waved a brown bag in my face. “I was eating lunch at the same time. And enjoying the view.” He winked at me with a salacious leer.

  “Picnicking on the side of the road doesn’t seem to be your style, Solus.” I glanced anxiously up and down the pavement, nervous that some shifters would appear. I was also trying not to be too irked that the bloody Fae in front of me hadn’t decided to help me get down. I concentrated on pushing the ember of heat back down again.